Splice for photographic material



Oct. 8, 1929. E. P. FLYNN SPLICE FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC MATERIAL Filed Oct. 2'7, 1926 INVENTOR,

Patented Oct. 8, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE EDWARD I. FLYNN, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO EASTMAN KODAK I COMPANY, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK SPLICE FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC MATERIAL Application filed. October 27, 1926. Serial No. 144,593.

This invention relates to the splicing of material to be subjected to fluid treatment baths and is directed especially to splicing bands of photographic material having one 5 or both surfaces coated with a layer which may be affected by the baths. One object is to provide a splice which will adhere firmly during the fluid treatment operations as well as during drying. Another object is to provide a splice in which both sides of the material to be joined are joined by pasters. Another object is to provide pasters which will not only adhere to the material to be joined but also to each other. Another object is to provide a splice in which two facing pasters will adhere to each other even though portions of the pasters contacting with a coated surface affected by the treatment baths should slip or fail to hold. Another object is to provide a strong splice which will pass around a small roller without loosening. Other objects will appear hereinafter from the following specification, the novel features being particularly pointed out in the claims at the end thereof.

In machines for continuously treating photographic strip material with-fluid treat ment baths it is necessary to jointlce different lengths of material so that the-lengths will move steadily through the machine. A plurality of guide rollers aregfrequently used in such machines and splices are apt to break loose in turning about these rollers. In passing back and forth over the rollers most splices work loose.

Photographic material, such as a photographically light sensitive emulsion coated upon paper or pyroxylin, is affected by the fluid treatment baths in that the emulsion side becomes soft and slippery and for this reason it is diificult, if not lmpossible, to get a paster to stick upon and stay stuck to such a surface. For best results a pastor should join each side of the stri material to prevent the ends of the latter rom straightening out and breaking the joint as the material passes about the guide'rollers of the machine. My present invention is directed to obtaining a satisfactory splice which will pass through the treatment baths without stripping off, and which will hold the ends of the material to be joined in proper alignment.

Coming now to the drawings in which like reference characters denote like parts throughout Fig. 1 is a plan View of strip material passing through a fluid treatment machine;

Fig. 2 is apart section and part side elevation of the machine and strip material shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged detail of one form of splice;

Fig. 4 is a similar view of a of splice;

Fig. 5 is a section on line 55 of Fig. 3; gig. 6 is a section online 66 of Fig. 4; an

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary detail of still a different type of splice.

Photographic material, such as strips of paper coated with a light sensitive photograhphic emulsion may be treated in various baths for the developing, fixing, washing, and other fluid treatment operations, and this is preferably done continuously, the end of one stripbeing fastened to the end of another by means of the splice which will be hereinafter more fully described. I I

In Figs. 1 and 2 I'have shown diagrammatically a fluid treatment tank in which different type one step of the fluid treatment operations may be performed. Obviously any number a of these tanks may be placed in a'row so that, if desired, a series of treatment baths may be used successively.

The strips of material 1 may be joined at their edges 2 by means of a pair of pasters 3 and 4. In the form shown in Fig. 3, the strips 1 are perforated at 6, and the edges 2 are spaced a short distance apart after which paster 4 is placed across one face of the material, the adhesive A projecting upwardly through the cutout portions 6 and between the spaced edges of the strip material. The distance between the edges of the strips as shown at 8 is not material. Over the top of the splice a second paster 3 having an ad hesive coating A is placed with the adhesive contactin with thesurface of the strip material, an also contacting through theapertures 6 and along the strip 8 covered by the adhesive A of paster 4. Thus the splice consists of two pasters facingeach other partially in contact with each other and partially contacting with the two outer surfaces of the strips 1. In Fig. 5 I have shown the strips 1 to have coatings 5 and 5 one on each side of the paper strip. These coatings are softened when they pass through the fluid treatment baths. The adhesives A and A of pasters 3 and 4 are waterproof adhesives so that they will not be afiected by the fluid treatment baths. By having areas of the adhesives contacting with each other the splice will hold successfully even though those portions of the paster which are contacting with the coatings 5 and 5 should slip or become loosened due to the action ofthe baths on the coatings; because areas of the pasters contact through the openings 6, and in the form shown in Figs. 3 and 5 also lie in contact between the spaced ends of the strip material, as shown at 8.

The splice shown in Figs. 4 and 6 is similar to that above described except that two rows of perforations 9 and 10 are used and the pasters 3 and 4 are Somewhat wider so that the adhesive coatings A and A may contact with each other through the sets of cutouts 9 and 10. It will be noted from Fig. 6, areas 11 and 12 of the adhesive coatings A and A adhere together in the openings 9 and 10.

In Fig. 7 still a different type of cutout is used in making the splice. Here the ends 1 are cut with a suitable punch which provides dovetailed notches 13. These notches face each other, and pasters 3 and 4 may contact through these openings to hold the end of the strips firmly together.

It is obvious that the number and shape of the cutouts used in the ends of the strip material may be varied widely, it only being necessary to provide a sufficient area through which the pasters may contact so as to hold the ends of the strip material securely. The strip material 1 may have a coating which is affected by the fluid treatment bath on one side only, as indicated at 5in Fig. 6, or the strips may be double coated, as shown in Fig. 5 at 5 and 5. In the former case the paster indicated at 4 in Fig. 6 will adhere to the surface of the strip material as well as to the adhesive A of paster 3 through the openings 9 and 10. As the coating 5 is affected by the fluid baths the adhesive A of paster 3 may not adhere securely to this coating, but the splice will nevertheless hold, due to the contact through the cutouts in the strip material.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is,

1. In a flexible splice for strip material having at least one surface coated with a layer adapted to be aflected by fluid treatment baths, the combination with a plurality of abutting ends of material to be joined, each of said ends having cut out areas therein, of joining members comprising pasters, each paster having a waterproof adhesive on one side, said pasters lying on opposite sides of said abutting strips of material to counteract curling and havingareas of the waterproof adhesive of one paster adhering to areas of adhesive of another paster through said cut-.

out areas of the strip material.

2. A flexible splice for j oiningthe abutting ends of strip material having cut out portions adjacent the ends including means for holding the spliced abutting ends in substantially the same plane by pasters on each side of the end portions to be joined, waterproof adhesive coatings on said pasters, portions of said waterproof adhesive areas contacting with each other through the cut out portions of the strip material, and other portions of the adhesive areas of the two pasters contacting with ends of the strip material.

3 3. A flexible splice for joining sheet material having on at least one side thereof a layer adapted to be aflected'by fluids which may cause said layer to soften and to allow adhesives to slip thereon, comprising a plurality of sheets of material to be joined having cut out areas therein, means for holding the cut out areas end to end including a plurality of pasters applied to both sides of the perforated areas andeach having an adhesive adapted to resistand be unaffected by fluid treatment baths, said pasters having areas of adhesive in contact with opposite sides of the sheets ofmaterial to be joined and having also other areas of adhesive in contact with an adhesive area of another paster through the cut out areas of the material to be joined.

4:. The method of forming a flexible splice between the ends of strip material having at least one coating forming a layer adapted to be softened by fluid treatment baths, that comprises forming a plurality of cut out areas in the regions of the ends to be joined, laying the cut out areas end to end, and applying pasters each having an adhesive unaflected by fluid baths, with the adhesive areas facing each other on opposite sides of the several strips of material, and forcing areas of the facing adhesive coating into contact through the cut out areas of the strips of material, whereby the sheets will be united end to end to form a long strip.

Signed at Rochester, New York, this 21st day of October, 1926.

EDWARD P. FLYNN. 

